After a long season of working 16-hour days in my family's thistle orchards, Pappy would finally let me and my 21 siblings take a day off, and we'd gather 'round a pan of Mama's corn pone and a pot of steaming thistle stew and enjoy each other's company without worrying which of us wouldn't survive the harsh Kansa-homa Winter.

The best parts of the harvest festival have been kept alive with Slide Ranch's annual Harvest Celebration. Sure, there's not as much dysentary, and you can milk goats instead of the traditional prairie marmot, but you'd be hard-pressed to find a more authentic harvest celebration this side of Amish country.

On Saturday, October 10th from 10am to 4pm, come to Slide Ranch for:

Scarecrow making - Now in my day, we used witchcraft to transform disobedient children into statues, but I understand these will be made primarily from straw. (Sigh) Simpler times...

Wool spinning - In addition to spinning wool for clothes, we'd also spin sheep for entertainment. You'd get the sheep as dizzy as possible and then race them across the barn. Then you'd eat the loser. And the winner. We were hungry in those days.

Relaxing in the garden - A lot of people think that we didn't know the meaning of the word "relax," and that's not true. We just defined it differently: "the time between when your heart stops beating, and your body finishes decomposing."

Coastal hikes - If by hikes you mean back-breaking work, and by coastal you mean in the thistle orchard, then yes, we did go on coastal hikes.

Great live music - I was actually a classically trained jug-blower and washboard player back in the day. I had ambitions to go pro until a giant tumbleweed came and destroyed the local symphony.

Now, the bad news is that it does cost money: $20 a head in advance, or $25 at the gate. $75 for families of 4 or more.

But the good news is kids two and under get in for free, as opposed in my day, when kids under two would have to work the fields for 16 hours at a time. And if they complained? No thistle stew for them that night!

So come on down to the Slide Ranch Harvest Celebration. Marvel at nature's bounty, and be grateful you don't live in a era when you actually have to live with her as your cruel, cruel mistress.

September 20, 2009

Windsurfing is what you get when you take a yacht club and overrun it with beach bum hippies. After a long night of partying, a surfboard with a sail stuck on it might be the end result. And like all hybrids, windsurfing is something of an outcast. It's got one hand on a sail and one foot on a board and no one to eat with at lunchtime.

But untold wonders await you if you choose to pursue a relationship with this awkward sport.

This video features "loops, aerials, waveriding, spocks, flakas, and jibes." I figure if it's it's this amazing to watch, it must be even better to actually do it.

Now, I have some good news and bad news for you about windsurfing in West Marin. First, the bad news: you can't really do it there as a beginner. The conditions aren't too beginner-friendly (read: you will die) and as a result there aren't really any windsurfing shops in the area doing rentals and lessons.

But here's the good news: there's a really great place to do it that's pretty nearby and it's cheap. The Cal Sailing Club in Berkeley is a non-profit organization that gives windsurfing lessons every Saturday at 10:30am.

$69 buys you a three month membership, which covers all-you-can-eat rentals and lessons. Plus, if you're a student or a senior, it's only $65 and you can take your savings down to The Cheeseboard for one excellent slice of pizza.

Tangential gush: since you're already down in Berkeley, you might as well make a day of it and grab a bite to eat there, and the Cheeseboard is a good a place to do it as any. They only make one type of pizza a day and it's always thoughtfully composed, vegetarian, and really, really good. A past creation: "Fresh Bell Pepper and Onions, Feta and Mozzarella Cheeses, Kalamata Olive Tapenade and Italian Parsley." Do it. You deserve it after learning how to windsurf.

If you still want to get on the water but don't feel like forking over any money, the Cal Sailing Club also has a bunch of free sailing days where CSC volunteers introduce people to the joys of sailing.

I'm not saying you have to make sailing or windsurfing your new life mission (or more realistically, make getting water up your nose your new hobby), but there's something magical about learning to do something that you never thought you were capable of. All of a sudden your life floods with possibilities. You've transformed from the person who reads a real estate blog on the Internet into a person who can do this:

September 09, 2009

There's hardly any need for me to tell you about the upcoming hootenanny on September 26th. I know you're all such cool people that you knew about it weeks ago. Shucks, you practically invented the word.

But just in case someone stumbles across this blog who isn't as cool as you, here are the vitals:

KWMR, the best (only?) West Marin radio station is throwing its semi-annual Hootenanny on 9/26/09 from 12pm to 4pm. That means if you miss it, you'll have to wait another 6 months to find out what you actually missed.

Those of you in attendance can expect to find live music, a BBQ, and an open house. So you can listen to tunes while walking through the station and getting your grub on. Not too shabby.

August 24, 2009

Surfing. One of the Left Coast’s great pastimes. Daunting,
yes, but rewarding? Doubly so. I can understand the apprehension that might
come along with a first surfing lesson, but if you’re willing to overcome your
hesitation, there’s an incredible world that awaits you.

Fact: Surfing will make you cooler.

It doesn’t matter how old you are. You + surfing = cooler
you. The amount of coolness-increase you experience is, however, at least
loosely correlated to how well you surf. In other words, if you spend all day
eating waves, you might now achieve your maximum coolness. Practice, makes
perfect.

Myth: Surfing is the most dangerous sport ever.

There are many more dangerous sports than surfing,
especially if you consider competitive Russian roulette a sport. Seriously
though, you have a far better chance of getting into a car accident than you do
having a shark attack you. Is that comforting? That was meant to be comforting.

Fact: Riding a wave is the best feeling in the world.

There is a downside to this, namely that other important
events such as your wedding day, the birth of a child, or winning the lottery
will pale in comparison. However,
most surfers find the trade worthwhile.

Myth: Surfing is the heroin of sports.

In most important aspects, this is not true.

Fact: Surfing might make you talk like a surfer

It might also turn you into a member of the Beach Boys. This
was more desirable several decades ago.

Don’t surf against penguins until you’re very confident in
your surfing abilities, and have a large bucket of small fish to distract them
with.

Myth: Surfing is expensive.

Aside from the aforementioned bucket of fish, there are very
few costs to surfing. Oceans are free, and you can rent a board and a wetsuit
from Bolinas Surf Shop for about $25. A group lesson, a greatidea for a first timer, is about $50.

So basically, you need to get out there and try. It’s
nothing short of the best thing you’ll ever do in your life. Ever.

August 17, 2009

Growing up I was a huge fan of eating, which naturally led to another passion: cooking. I once heard the essence of the culinary arts distilled as thus:

1. Start with great ingredients.

2. Don't mess it up.

Solid, solid advice. So if you're likewise gastronomically inclined, you're now wondering, where can I get the best ingredients? When in Marin, do as the Marinites do and check out a farmer's market. Pound for pound, dollar for dollar, there's no better place to get the freshest most delicious produce you've ever had. You'll get the first crack at whatever's in season and that's the start of a great meal.

Paraphrasing Chef Tom Colicchio in his excellent book, Think Like A Chef, chefs get inspired to cook a meal based on the best available produce. The proteins don't really change from season to season, but the first crop of kale, or white nectarines, or summer squashes-- now that's something to get excited about.

With that in mind, you should really hit up the Point Reyes Farmers' Market next time you're free between 9am and 1pm on a Saturday. In fact, I can give you 6 reasons why you owe it to yourself to check it out.

1. They have free samples there. Free samples are usually enough of a reason to get me to go anywhere (especially Costco). Here you have the added bonus of learning by trial and error how to judge good produce. Your senses will be tuned to ninja-like levels of precision in touch, smell, taste, and sight. Hearing... will probably be unaffected, unless you're listening to the fruit hawker telling you "yes, this one is ripe," which is a good idea too.

2. Royalty have been there. In November 2005, Their Royal Highnesses The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall went to the market. Are you going to stand there and tell me that you're better than royalty? That you're too good to shop where the royals shop? Check for ripeness what the royals check for ripeness? Freely sample what the royals freely sample? I thought not.

3. The environment. There's a lot of talk about the impact our food has on the environment and how much better it is to eat local, organic, and seasonal. It's a very important issue, and I don't want to mince words here. If you buy anything at the farmers' market you will save the world. I don't mean this figuratively. Any purchase that you make at the farmers' market will single-handedly solve every environmental problem we are currently facing. Literally. So buy an organic nectarine so we can stop worrying about this global warming thing already.

4. Music. The live kind. Played by people, and or cyborgs that look like people. Either way it'll sound really good and you won't know the difference.

5. You can make the best meal that you've ever had. As delicious as the restaurants in West Marin are, a lot of taste is the experience that goes with it. Picking the best ingredients out with the help of its growers is a great start. Plus, if you're stumped for dish ideas, the growers will know some great ones. If you want to put your time and energy into making one great meal, you'll create a dish and an experience that you'll remember for a long time.

August 05, 2009

The foundation of any good time is the knowledge that you're experiencing something unique. Chance and circumstance have conspired to give you a moment that you're lucky to catch and will never come again.

It's with an eye to the unique that I'm letting you know about an opportunity to culture yourselves at the upcoming West Marin Review release party, August 16th, Sunday, 4pm.

Since the last Harry Potter book was released two years ago, the literary world has been yearning for the next big event that would whip readers everywhere into a frenzy and trigger a mass of literate-hysteria. I'm letting you know right now: the West Marin Review, Volume 2 release party is that event that we've been waiting for.

The West Marin Review is a literary and art journal that features some of the best talent in the area such as Pulitzer Prize winner Robert Hass, California Award winner Philip Fradkin, and influencial poet Joanne Kyger.

If they were selling tickets to this thing, the tickets would be sold out. People would be camped out for weeks around the venue, Toby's Feed Barn Gallery in Point Reyes, just to get a glimpse of all the talent that will read there. Inexplicably, but lucky for you, the event is free and you won't even have to set up a tent outside of Toby's to be assured a seat.

All you have to do is show up on August 16th ready to be blown away by the blinding convergence of literary and artistic talent that happens only once in a generation.

If you haven't gotten enough cheese through simply buying and consuming it, you'll no doubt want to get the most out of your creamery experience and sign up for a tour. I can assure you that unlike watching a sausage being made, watching cheese being made only enhances your enjoyment of the food afterward. Book in advance here to ensure that the tour doesn't get sold out, lest you spend the rest of your days weeping, wondering what might've been.

Now, devoted readers of this blog are well-acquainted with the people who won't go anywhere unless there are oysters present. You know who you are. With that in mind, next on Levitt's list of greatest hits is Drakes Bay Oyster Farms. To put it mildy, yes, there are oysters there. Fresh, clean, delicious oysters. Buy a net-full from Kevin the owner, sit on the shore at the edge of the continent with the rest of California at your back, and get to shucking.

The last of Levitt's picks that I need to mention is the Green Gulch Farm Zen Center. If you've ever thought to yourself, "I love working on farms and Zen meditation, but I can never seem to do both in the same location," then this place might be for you.

GGFZC (clearly not named with its acronym in mind) puts on a slew of programs as diverse as the basics of bread making and the basics of composting, though presumably not at the same time.

There's a cool meditation/lecture/lunch program every Sunday that seems like a good deal for its suggested donation of $13. Side note: I'm pretty sure monks study kung fu so their suggestions of donations can hold a little more weight. As a rule, I usually listen to the suggestion of most people who can kill me five ways with two fingers.

So, tea ceremonies, cheese tours, and bivalves. And I didn't even cover half of Levitt's highlights. There's a great big world out there. Better start sharpening your oyster knife.

July 23, 2009

At Seadrift HQ it's always nice to hear when we've done a good job. These comments are all from satisfied Seadrift renters:

"We always love every aspect of the rental experience at Seadrift. The houses are comfortable, well-stocked, easy to enter and leave, and of course, the venue is one of the most beautiful in the world!"

-Alison

"Very helpful at all times."

-Charlotte

"The most relaxing and pleasant place to unwind -- [we] recommend staying at Seadrift for anyone who loves to relax and who loves the ocean."

-Patsy and Peter

"William was the best! He helped us find the right house for our family group."

-Anonymous

"We have enjoyed doing business with you because you're flexible, upbeat, and honorable. We'll look forward to working with you in the future."

-Monte

If you have your own rave (or rant) that you'd like to contribute, and we promise not to get big-headed.

July 13, 2009

On the left, the original kitchen. On the right, the finished product, looking very snazzy.(click to enlarge snazziness)

The attentive observer will notice a new and improved stove, oven, as well as redone cabinets and hardwood floors. It looks like the trash bin also got a makeover to boot. Feel free to amuse yourself for hours playing the "what's different" game, as I'm sure I've missed something.

I won't go so far as to say this'll suddenly make you a better chef if you cook in here, but it certainly won't hurt. It's hard not to feel a bit more confident about your meal when you have such a beautiful kitchen backing you up.

A. Yes. This is a very cool and very eclectic line-up. It has hip-hop, indie, afrobeat, country and more. If you have ears, you'll find something you like. Even if you don't have ears, there'll be food. If you have no mouth, I really don't know what to tell you.

Q. I now understand life will be pointless if I don't go to this concert. When is it?

A. Saturday, July 25th, 2009. It starts at 11am and goes until it's over. Tickets for adults are $25 in advance, and $30 at the door. It's only $10 if you're 21 or under. Buy 'em here and start counting down the days until awesomeness.

Q. I refuse to go to concerts unless there are oysters. Will there be oysters?

Q. I hate oysters but enjoy eating local food. Will there be local food?

A. Also yes. And to preempt any other questions, there'll also be craft vendors, a pickin' porch (whatever that is), and "circus acts"... although I don't know which ones. Maybe an elephant on a tightrope, maybe just a flaming hoop. Maybe both. Come see for yourself.